In this article we use Foucault’s conception of games of truth to investigate how truth
in public policy is rhetorically constructed through the notion of “transparency.” Data
was collected from various public sources regarding a medal target policy promoted
by Sport and Recreation New Zealand (Sparc) for the national team at the 2006 Commonwealth
Games. By analyzing the multifarious rhetoric surrounding the medal
target policy, we show that the notion of transparency, although ostensibly appealing
and helpful as a mechanism to justify goals, exposes inherent contradictions that were
counter to Sparc’s goals. The discussion encourages scholars and practitioners to conceive
of policy as ongoing contests over truth. We suggest that practitioners might
benefit from considering the problematic implications of promoting “transparent”
public policy.